Susquehanna Forecasts Strong Price Appreciation for United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) Stock

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) had its price objective lifted by research analysts at Susquehanna from $120.00 to $130.00 in a note issued to investors on Tuesday,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a “positive” rating on the transportation company’s stock. Susquehanna’s price target would suggest a potential upside of 20.57% from the stock’s previous close.

Several other research analysts have also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays increased their price target on United Airlines from $75.00 to $150.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, November 14th. Bank of America upped their price objective on United Airlines from $70.00 to $84.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. The Goldman Sachs Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $119.00 price objective on shares of United Airlines in a report on Friday, November 15th. Sanford C. Bernstein upped their price objective on United Airlines from $68.00 to $85.00 and gave the company an “outperform” rating in a report on Thursday, October 17th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on United Airlines from $75.00 to $95.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Monday, October 21st. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, sixteen have given a buy rating and two have assigned a strong buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and a consensus price target of $110.83.

United Airlines Price Performance

Shares of UAL opened at $107.82 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $35.46 billion, a P/E ratio of 11.43, a PEG ratio of 0.69 and a beta of 1.43. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $101.14 and a 200 day moving average price of $74.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.99, a current ratio of 0.81 and a quick ratio of 0.74. United Airlines has a 12 month low of $37.02 and a 12 month high of $116.00.

United Airlines (NASDAQ:UAL) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, January 21st. The transportation company reported $3.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.96 by $0.30. United Airlines had a return on equity of 32.26% and a net margin of 5.52%. The company had revenue of $14.70 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $14.40 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business posted $2.00 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 7.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts forecast that United Airlines will post 13.09 earnings per share for the current year.

United Airlines declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, October 15th that allows the company to buyback $1.50 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization allows the transportation company to purchase up to 7.1% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are typically a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

Insider Activity at United Airlines

In other United Airlines news, EVP Linda P. Jojo sold 60,000 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, November 22nd. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.12, for a total value of $5,707,200.00. Following the transaction, the executive vice president now directly owns 63,599 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $6,049,536.88. This represents a 48.54 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. 0.63% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp increased its position in United Airlines by 0.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 10,320,253 shares of the transportation company’s stock worth $588,874,000 after purchasing an additional 78,470 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 41.2% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 3,112,583 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $177,604,000 after acquiring an additional 908,558 shares during the last quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 28.0% during the 3rd quarter. MidWestOne Financial Group Inc. now owns 53,704 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $3,064,000 after acquiring an additional 11,743 shares during the last quarter. KBC Group NV acquired a new position in shares of United Airlines during the 4th quarter valued at about $485,000. Finally, Aigen Investment Management LP increased its holdings in shares of United Airlines by 87.2% during the 3rd quarter. Aigen Investment Management LP now owns 18,912 shares of the transportation company’s stock valued at $1,079,000 after acquiring an additional 8,808 shares during the last quarter. 69.69% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About United Airlines

United Airlines Holdings, Inc, through its subsidiaries, provides air transportation services in North America, Asia, Europe, Africa, the Pacific, the Middle East, and Latin America. The company transports people and cargo through its mainline and regional fleets. It also offers catering, ground handling, flight academy, and maintenance services for third parties.